Lewis Hamilton has sent a message of congratulations to ex-F1 driver Nicholas Latifi after the former revealed he had recently graduated from London Business School.
This weekend will see Hamilton once again in action for Ferrari in the United States Grand Prix in Austin, with the seven-time world champion recently challenging his team to make improvements heading into the 2026 season next year.
Latifi, who has not raced in Formula One since 2022, posted on Instagram his life update, which read: “Hey everyone! It’s been a while since I last posted. I wanted to take some time away to fully focus on my MBA at London Business School and really enjoy the experience free of distractions. I’m happy to share that I graduated a few months ago!
“Having not done an undergrad degree, I had no idea what to expect, and will admit I was a little nervous at first. But, I quickly discovered how warm and welcoming the LBS community is and built friendships I know will last a lifetime. These past two years have been among the most rewarding of my life, filled with learning, growth, new experiences, and memories I will carry with me forever. Excited for what is ahead. More to come soon.”
In the comments section, Hamilton was quick to congratulate Latifi, writing: “Congratulations” and adding an applause emoji to his comment.
Of course, it’s worth noting Hamilton could have been an eight-time world champion, had it not been for the drama that unfolded at the 2021 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, in which Latifi was heavily involved.
Heading into the final race of the year, Hamilton led Max Verstappen in the Drivers’ Championship standings. However, on lap 53 of 58, Latifi crashed while battling with Mick Schumacher, leading to a safety car. Controversially, race director Michael Masi decided the race would not end under a safety car, ordering the five lapped drivers between Hamilton and Verstappen to unlap themselves – essentially leading to a one-lap shootout for the title.
This allowed Verstappen to close the gap on Hamilton, with the pair doing battle for one final lap, in which the former, on fresh tires, passed the latter to claim his first championship. “It was never my intention and I can only apologise for influencing and creating an opportunity,” Latifi said after the race. “I made a mistake.”
He continued: “We were just really struggling for grip through the next sequence of corners, and especially where I ended up going off. It’s been a tricky corner all weekend for me, so dirty tyres, dirty air and I made a mistake. I wasn’t aware of the situation of the race up until then. Obviously it was never my intention to inadvertently influence that, but I made a mistake and ruined my own race.”
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While Latifi received abuse for the part he played in Hamilton’s eventual loss to Verstappen, Hamilton was quick to defend the driver following the social media threats.
“In terms of support I got, Lewis did send me a message, a few days after, just before I realised the statement. I won’t go into details of what he said,” added Latifi.